97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2011 and 2012
HB4591

 

Introduced 2/1/2012, by Rep. JoAnn D. Osmond

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
815 ILCS 505/2MM

    Amends the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act. Provides that a consumer reporting agency may not include in a consumer credit report any information based upon obligations incurred by a consumer during the time the consumer is a resident of a facility as defined under the Nursing Home Care Act.


LRB097 17959 JLS 63182 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB4591LRB097 17959 JLS 63182 b

1    AN ACT concerning business.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business
5Practices Act is amended by changing Section 2MM as follows:
 
6    (815 ILCS 505/2MM)
7    Sec. 2MM. Verification of accuracy of consumer reporting
8information used to extend consumers credit and security freeze
9on credit reports.
10    (a) A credit card issuer who mails an offer or solicitation
11to apply for a credit card and who receives a completed
12application in response to the offer or solicitation which
13lists an address that is not substantially the same as the
14address on the offer or solicitation may not issue a credit
15card based on that application until reasonable steps have been
16taken to verify the applicant's change of address.
17    (b) Any person who uses a consumer credit report in
18connection with the approval of credit based on the application
19for an extension of credit, and who has received notification
20of a police report filed with a consumer reporting agency that
21the applicant has been a victim of financial identity theft, as
22defined in Section 16-30 or 16G-15 of the Criminal Code of
231961, may not lend money or extend credit without taking

 

 

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1reasonable steps to verify the consumer's identity and confirm
2that the application for an extension of credit is not the
3result of financial identity theft.
4    (b-5) A consumer reporting agency may not include in a
5consumer credit report any information based upon obligations
6incurred by a consumer during the time the consumer is a
7resident of a facility as defined in Section 1-113 of the
8Nursing Home Care Act.
9    (c) A consumer may request that a security freeze be placed
10on his or her credit report by sending a request in writing by
11certified mail to a consumer reporting agency at an address
12designated by the consumer reporting agency to receive such
13requests. This subsection (c) does not prevent a consumer
14reporting agency from advising a third party that a security
15freeze is in effect with respect to the consumer's credit
16report.
17    (d) A consumer reporting agency shall place a security
18freeze on a consumer's credit report no later than 5 business
19days after receiving a written request from the consumer:
20        (1) a written request described in subsection (c);
21        (2) proper identification; and
22        (3) payment of a fee, if applicable.
23    (e) Upon placing the security freeze on the consumer's
24credit report, the consumer reporting agency shall send to the
25consumer within 10 business days a written confirmation of the
26placement of the security freeze and a unique personal

 

 

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1identification number or password or similar device, other than
2the consumer's Social Security number, to be used by the
3consumer when providing authorization for the release of his or
4her credit report for a specific party or period of time.
5    (f) If the consumer wishes to allow his or her credit
6report to be accessed for a specific party or period of time
7while a freeze is in place, he or she shall contact the
8consumer reporting agency using a point of contact designated
9by the consumer reporting agency, request that the freeze be
10temporarily lifted, and provide the following:
11        (1) Proper identification;
12        (2) The unique personal identification number or
13    password or similar device provided by the consumer
14    reporting agency;
15        (3) The proper information regarding the third party or
16    time period for which the report shall be available to
17    users of the credit report; and
18        (4) A fee, if applicable.
19    (g) A consumer reporting agency shall develop a contact
20method to receive and process a request from a consumer to
21temporarily lift a freeze on a credit report pursuant to
22subsection (f) in an expedited manner.
23    A contact method under this subsection shall include: (i) a
24postal address; and (ii) an electronic contact method chosen by
25the consumer reporting agency, which may include the use of
26telephone, fax, Internet, or other electronic means.

 

 

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1    (h) A consumer reporting agency that receives a request
2from a consumer to temporarily lift a freeze on a credit report
3pursuant to subsection (f), shall comply with the request no
4later than 3 business days after receiving the request.
5    (i) A consumer reporting agency shall remove or temporarily
6lift a freeze placed on a consumer's credit report only in the
7following cases:
8        (1) upon consumer request, pursuant to subsection (f)
9    or subsection (l) of this Section; or
10        (2) if the consumer's credit report was frozen due to a
11    material misrepresentation of fact by the consumer.
12    If a consumer reporting agency intends to remove a freeze
13upon a consumer's credit report pursuant to this subsection,
14the consumer reporting agency shall notify the consumer in
15writing prior to removing the freeze on the consumer's credit
16report.
17    (j) If a third party requests access to a credit report on
18which a security freeze is in effect, and this request is in
19connection with an application for credit or any other use, and
20the consumer does not allow his or her credit report to be
21accessed for that specific party or period of time, the third
22party may treat the application as incomplete.
23    (k) If a consumer requests a security freeze, the credit
24reporting agency shall disclose to the consumer the process of
25placing and temporarily lifting a security freeze, and the
26process for allowing access to information from the consumer's

 

 

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1credit report for a specific party or period of time while the
2freeze is in place.
3    (l) A security freeze shall remain in place until the
4consumer requests, using a point of contact designated by the
5consumer reporting agency, that the security freeze be removed.
6A credit reporting agency shall remove a security freeze within
73 business days of receiving a request for removal from the
8consumer, who provides:
9        (1) Proper identification;
10        (2) The unique personal identification number or
11    password or similar device provided by the consumer
12    reporting agency; and
13        (3) A fee, if applicable.
14    (m) A consumer reporting agency shall require proper
15identification of the person making a request to place or
16remove a security freeze.
17    (n) The provisions of subsections (c) through (m) of this
18Section do not apply to the use of a consumer credit report by
19any of the following:
20        (1) A person or entity, or a subsidiary, affiliate, or
21    agent of that person or entity, or an assignee of a
22    financial obligation owing by the consumer to that person
23    or entity, or a prospective assignee of a financial
24    obligation owing by the consumer to that person or entity
25    in conjunction with the proposed purchase of the financial
26    obligation, with which the consumer has or had prior to

 

 

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1    assignment an account or contract, including a demand
2    deposit account, or to whom the consumer issued a
3    negotiable instrument, for the purposes of reviewing the
4    account or collecting the financial obligation owing for
5    the account, contract, or negotiable instrument. For
6    purposes of this subsection, "reviewing the account"
7    includes activities related to account maintenance,
8    monitoring, credit line increases, and account upgrades
9    and enhancements.
10        (2) A subsidiary, affiliate, agent, assignee, or
11    prospective assignee of a person to whom access has been
12    granted under subsection (f) of this Section for purposes
13    of facilitating the extension of credit or other
14    permissible use.
15        (3) Any state or local agency, law enforcement agency,
16    trial court, or private collection agency acting pursuant
17    to a court order, warrant, or subpoena.
18        (4) A child support agency acting pursuant to Title
19    IV-D of the Social Security Act.
20        (5) The State or its agents or assigns acting to
21    investigate fraud.
22        (6) The Department of Revenue or its agents or assigns
23    acting to investigate or collect delinquent taxes or unpaid
24    court orders or to fulfill any of its other statutory
25    responsibilities.
26        (7) The use of credit information for the purposes of

 

 

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1    prescreening as provided for by the federal Fair Credit
2    Reporting Act.
3        (8) Any person or entity administering a credit file
4    monitoring subscription or similar service to which the
5    consumer has subscribed.
6        (9) Any person or entity for the purpose of providing a
7    consumer with a copy of his or her credit report or score
8    upon the consumer's request.
9        (10) Any person using the information in connection
10    with the underwriting of insurance.
11    (n-5) This Section does not prevent a consumer reporting
12agency from charging a fee of no more than $10 to a consumer
13for each freeze, removal, or temporary lift of the freeze,
14regarding access to a consumer credit report, except that a
15consumer reporting agency may not charge a fee to (i) a
16consumer 65 years of age or over for placement and removal of a
17freeze, or (ii) a victim of identity theft who has submitted to
18the consumer reporting agency a valid copy of a police report,
19investigative report, or complaint that the consumer has filed
20with a law enforcement agency about unlawful use of his or her
21personal information by another person.
22    (o) If a security freeze is in place, a consumer reporting
23agency shall not change any of the following official
24information in a credit report without sending a written
25confirmation of the change to the consumer within 30 days of
26the change being posted to the consumer's file: (i) name, (ii)

 

 

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1date of birth, (iii) Social Security number, and (iv) address.
2Written confirmation is not required for technical
3modifications of a consumer's official information, including
4name and street abbreviations, complete spellings, or
5transposition of numbers or letters. In the case of an address
6change, the written confirmation shall be sent to both the new
7address and to the former address.
8    (p) The following entities are not required to place a
9security freeze in a consumer report, however, pursuant to
10paragraph (3) of this subsection, a consumer reporting agency
11acting as a reseller shall honor any security freeze placed on
12a consumer credit report by another consumer reporting agency:
13        (1) A check services or fraud prevention services
14    company, which issues reports on incidents of fraud or
15    authorizations for the purpose of approving or processing
16    negotiable instruments, electronic funds transfers, or
17    similar methods of payment.
18        (2) A deposit account information service company,
19    which issues reports regarding account closures due to
20    fraud, substantial overdrafts, ATM abuse, or similar
21    negative information regarding a consumer to inquiring
22    banks or other financial institutions for use only in
23    reviewing a consumer request for a deposit account at the
24    inquiring bank or financial institution.
25        (3) A consumer reporting agency that:
26            (A) acts only to resell credit information by

 

 

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1        assembling and merging information contained in a
2        database of one or more consumer reporting agencies;
3        and
4            (B) does not maintain a permanent database of
5        credit information from which new credit reports are
6        produced.
7    (q) For purposes of this Section:
8    "Credit report" has the same meaning as "consumer report",
9as ascribed to it in 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1681a(d).
10    "Consumer reporting agency" has the meaning ascribed to it
11in 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1681a(f).
12    "Security freeze" means a notice placed in a consumer's
13credit report, at the request of the consumer and subject to
14certain exceptions, that prohibits the consumer reporting
15agency from releasing the consumer's credit report or score
16relating to an extension of credit, without the express
17authorization of the consumer.
18     "Extension of credit" does not include an increase in an
19existing open-end credit plan, as defined in Regulation Z of
20the Federal Reserve System (12 C.F.R. 226.2), or any change to
21or review of an existing credit account.
22    "Proper identification" means information generally deemed
23sufficient to identify a person. Only if the consumer is unable
24to reasonably identify himself or herself with the information
25described above, may a consumer reporting agency require
26additional information concerning the consumer's employment

 

 

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1and personal or family history in order to verify his or her
2identity.
3    (r) Any person who violates this Section commits an
4unlawful practice within the meaning of this Act.
5(Source: P.A. 97-597, eff. 1-1-12.)